We’re All Selfish and Unhappy

I give you the battle-cry of modernity, perhaps of human beings for all times. We are selfish; we are unhappy. Or, perhaps more aptly: we are selfish and as a result we are unhappy. Why? Well, selfishness is pride, in a religious sense the sin of Adam, in a secular one the sin of politicians: in both cases, the sin of all people.

But surely I’m being reductive, applying the scientism of sin to humanity. My imaginary opponent, however, doth protest too much, methinks.  Human beings are predisposed to selfishness. That’s simply a fact. We throw away excess food; we don’t recycle; we don’t give to the shivering homeless drug addict on the street. Why? Because, from day one, we look out for number one. Sometimes this is okay. Babies don’t know any better. In general, no one is perfect.

And that imperfection is perfectly manifest in the world. Our greatest crimes are motivated by pride. The rich man refuses to give to Lazarus; you passed that homeless man this morning; megalomaniacal dictators hold North Korea hostage for their own pleasure. Man’s honoring of himself over his fellow men brings only temporary happiness at best and sorrow at worst. This is the insatiable hunger of Jason the Tyrant as reported by Aristotle.

By contrast, our most praiseworthy deeds are selfless. Our saints, religious and secular, do not live for themselves. We praise George Washington because he put his countrymen before himself. We admire Pope Francis because he hugs the sinner. Mother Theresa is pretty cool too. Even the little things: marriage, holding doors open, not killing others, betray an interest in “the other” over “the self.”
But why should that make us happy? Well, you’ve got me there. All I can ask is for quiet reflection on our own lives. In my experience, our society’s rampant consumeristic desire for instant self-gratification produces little but unhappiness. Sure, the issue is ages’ old, but we’d be silly to imagine the Internet age hasn’t made instant gratification easier. Can those tools be used for good? Surely. But we humans don’t tend to use such tools for the good. In the end, this is not an exhortation. I am no saint among sinners. But in a society where the self is always put first, where gratification rests in “what can I do for me,” I think such a reminder is in order.